mixed-reality simulation to help improve skills retention by 100 percent, reduce training time by 150 percent

HOUSTON, Feb. 12, 2018 – Honeywell (NYSE: HON) today announced a cloud-based simulation tool that uses a combination of augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) to train plant personnel on critical industrial work activities. With as much as 50 percent of industrial plant personnel due to retire within the next five years, the Honeywell Connected Plant Skills Insight Immersive Competency is designed to bring new industrial workers up to speed quickly by enhancing training and delivering it in new and contemporary ways.

Honeywell’s advanced training solution combines mixed reality with data analytics andHoneywell’s 25 years of experience in worker competency management to create an interactive environment for on-the-job training. It uses Microsoft’s HoloLens, the world’s first and only self-contained holographic computer, and Windows Mixed Reality headsets to simulate various scenarios for Honeywell’s C300 controller – such as primary failure and switchovers, cable and power supply failure – that train and test personnel on their skills.

“Megatrends such as the aging workforce are putting increased pressure on industrial companies and their training programs,” said Youssef Mestari, program director, Honeywell Connected Plant. “There is a need for more creative and effective training delivered through contemporary methods such as Immersive Competency, ultimately empowering industrial workers to directly improve plant performance, uptime, reliability and safety.”

Simulating specific job activities through virtual environments, which are accessed through the cloud, Honeywell’s solution offers a natural way to interact and communicate with peers or a trainer. Similar to a flight simulator, trainees can safely experience the impacts of their decisions. This approach improves skill retention versus traditional training methods by up to 100 percent and reduces the length of technical training by up to 150 percent. Additionally, the employees’ training progress is tracked as part of a formal competency management system.

“Honeywell’s unique approach to industrial training and competency development, combined with Windows Mixed Reality platform and devices, is a good example of a major industrial player proactively and creatively driving digital transformation,” said Lorraine Bardeen, general manager for Mixed Reality at Microsoft. “This is the first solution that directly links industrial staff competency to plant performance by measuring the training’s effectiveness based on real outcomes.”

At the INSIDER we’ve been saying this for years. The adoption of even basic cyber security actions in the industrial space is very low. Many companies believe that they are “pretty safe” because they are relatively obscure. But I recall a conversation with the head of IT of a regional potato chip company about 7 or 8 years ago: “I never thought anybody would cyber attack us. We make potato chips, for God’s sake.”

Honeywell, which has maintained a very high emphasis on cyber security in the industrial environment for over a decade now, sponsored a report by LNS Research on adoption of cyber security practices.

Here’s the press release with the study’s findings. All we can say is, “Wake up, people!”

The issue has gone beyond lack of knowledge. As Joy Ward, Spitzer and Boyes LLC’s director of research says, if you put together a good intellectual argument, and nobody is buying, you are looking at high emotional barriers. She recommends doing some serious qualitative research to determine what those barriers are, so that the intellectual argument can be adjusted and become effective.

Either that, or we need to prepare for a cyber disaster of enormous proportions.

Almost two thirds of surveyed companies don’t monitor for suspicious behavior

HOUSTON, December 6, 2017 – Honeywell (NYSE: HON) today released a new study showing industrial companies are not moving quickly to adopt cyber security measures to protect their data and operations, even as attacks have increased around the globe.
The survey – Putting Industrial Cyber Security at the Top of the CEO Agenda – was conducted by LNS Research and sponsored by Honeywell. It polled 130 strategic decision makers from industrial companies about their approach to the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), and their use of industrial cyber security technologies and practices. Among the findings were:
• More than half of respondents reported working in an industrial facility that already has had a cyber security breach.
• 45% of the responding companies still do not have an accountable enterprise leader for cyber security.
• Only 37% are monitoring for suspicious behavior.
• Although many companies are conducting regular risk assessments, 20% are not doing them at all.
“Decision makers are more aware of threats and some progress has been made to address them, but this report reinforces that cyber security fundamentals haven’t been adopted by a significant portion of the industrial community,” said Jeff Zindel, vice president and general manager, Honeywell Industrial Cyber Security. “In order to take advantage of the tremendous benefits of industrial digital transformation and IIoT, companies must improve their cyber security defenses and adapt to the heightened threat landscape now.”
The study suggests these three immediate actions for any industrial organization to capture the value of the new technologies:
1. Making industrial cyber security part of digital transformation strategies;
2. Driving best practice adoption across people, processes and technology, from access controls to risk monitoring, and tap external cyber expertise to fill gaps
3. Focusing on empowering leaders and building an organizational structure that breaks down the silos between IT and OT.
“Cyber security needs to be part of every CEO’s agenda to ensure the effective, immediate and long-term deployment of strategies and technologies such as IIoT,” said Matthew Littlefield, president and principal analyst, LNS Research. “In short, in order for a business to succeed on its digital transformation journey, it needs to succeed with industrial cyber security.”
LNS Research is a global leader in research and advisory for digital transformation of industry, delivering technology insights for business executives. Its analysts focus on identifying the metrics, leadership, business process, and technology capabilities effecting change.
​Honeywell’s industrial cyber security technologies and expertise address many of the issues identified in the LNS Research study. For more information, please visit https://hwll.co/uhrgs and www.becybersecure.com.